Flight description

In Episode 11, “Typhoon warning”, PilotsEYE.tv shows for the first time the entire flight of a new Boeing 777 freighter on its way to the Asian hub Hong Kong

The location of the latest PilotsEYE.tv is the cockpit of a Boeing 777 “freighter”. The flight promises a reunion with a familiar face from the Maldives and North Pole episodes (LTU): Joe Moser, presently Chief Pilot and Director of Flight Operations at AeroLogic, a joint venture of DHL Express and Lufthansa Cargo.

Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong’s airport, was opened in 1998 and boasts the world’s largest freight terminal. Among passenger airports it is the 12th busiest in the world, with 53 million passengers a year. For the foundation of the airport, an adjacent island was leveled and joined via land reclamation. With more than 1,000 takeoffs and landings a day, the airport is on par with Frankfurt.

Nose-gear view

This episode introduces three new cameras: Two capture the view over the shoulder of the pilot, showing at the same time the movement of the yoke and the plane. A third one is positioned on the nose landing gear, capturing breathtaking views of the main landing gear during takeoff and approach.

US TV debut

The editors of the US syndicated TV program “Right This Minute” liked the view from the lowered nose gear – at takeoff and landing –  so much that they aired the trailer of this episode on 57 cable channels across the US. What an accolade!

No fun – with this typhoon

The weather forecast predicts a rapidly developing tropical depression for arrival time in HKG (ICAO: VHHH) that could quickly turn into a typhoon. Will this approaching storm delay the landing in Hong Kong or even make it impossible? The captain’s coolness is comforting: “We’ll just fly there and take a look at it up close.”

Doors wide shut

Bergamo in northern Italy is just a short pit-stop on the way to Hong Kong. Because every minute counts, the plane is already fueled for the final destination. There’s always the possibility of someone forgetting to close a door after loading the plane. Thankfully there are a lot of safety precautions to prevent this.

Firm but fair

With 30,000 flight hours logged and 39 years of commercial service, Joe Moser is one of the longest-serving aircraft captains in the industry. In his familiar tough but fair tone, and most of all with skills that are honed, he is both exacting and entertaining as he leads his young crew to Asia. “If I could choose an instructor, it would be Joe Moser” is a comment that you often read on internet platforms such as Facebook and YouTube.

The second officer program

“No risk, no wait.” That’s how you could describe the trainee program – unique in Germany – of the cargo airline AeroLogic. Currently the airline employees 20 second officers (SO), fully qualified pilots who are subject to certain restrictions because they have logged too few flight hours. The benefit for them is the opportunity to fly such big aircraft right from the start.

The route

Leipzig (DE) • Munich • Innsbruck (AT) • Bergamo (IT) • Milan • Vienna (AT) • Budapest (HU) • Bucharest (RO) • Simferopol (UA) • Baku (AZ) • Ashgabat (TM) • Kabul (AF) • Delhi (IN) • Dhaka (BD) • Katha (MM) • Kunming (CN) • Longzhou • Guangzhou • Hong Kong.

This city never sleeps

Hong Kong (香港), which translates as “fragrant harbor”, is a great spot for a layover, offering one of the most beautiful lookout points, Victoria Peak, with a view of Kowloon and Kai Tak, the old airport. By rainbow ferry and on the longest escalator in the world, the crew plunges into Hong Kong’s bustling nightlife and a club that’s an insider tip among flight crews. The crew calls it a day after watching the famous “Symphony of Lights” show – syncing skyscraper illumination to music – at the harbor.

“Cargo doesn’t complain …

… Cargo doesn’t puke” is what cargo pilots like to joke. What’s the difference to flying passenger planes? What has to be given special attention? And why do boxhaulers have to be even more punctual than passenger flights?

This cargo is too hot

Loaded pallets are often left standing in the sun so long that the cargo hold has to be cooled. Despite an outside temperature of -4°F at an altitude of 26,000ft, the temperature reading on the skin of the fuselage is 61°F. The crew knows why.

From NavKit to NavApp

70 to 100 lbs of paper maps have been grounded since the entire navigation material, including manuals, has disappeared into the iPads of the pilots. You see the use of a communication chart in the movie and hear the story of how it evolved told by the captain (Audiotrack 2).

The PushersEYE

Nothing moves without it at an airport. Many pilots call it an “aircraft tug” or “tractor”. Whenever they push aircraft to the taxiway, a lot of inquisitive eyes follow them from the passenger cabin. For this film, in HKG it was possible for the first time to shoot the push-back procedure from the perspective of a tug.

When pilots hold on tight

Maximum rudder deflection is required after takeoff in Hong Kong to keep the aircraft stable on its climb–out. The pilot flying, Alexander Klatt, has his hands full trying to compensate for the vortex of the preceding B777F of competitor FedEx. Maybe the competition wanted to make a quick getaway?

St. Elmo’s fire 

What at first looks like lightening strikes reveals itself to be a light phenomenon caused by electrical charges, so-called “St. Elmo’s fire”, right in front of our eyes. And that just before the “low-visibility” approach, with the runway only coming into view 300ft over ground.

He couldn’t help commenting

Audiotrack 2 features – in addition to the original soundtrack – the commentary of the captain, who tells you in his very laid-back manner what he as commander of the mission thought and felt in individual situations.

More technology in the bonus material

Bonus  1 – OFP (operational flight plan) explained
Bonus  II – ECAM (electronic centralized aircraft monitor)
Bonus III – Best of KAI TAK videos, with comments by Joe Moser

Detailed documents for re-experiencing flights

For simulator pilots and jumpseat fans who want to explore the subject in more depth, PilotsEYE.tv provides all relevant documents from the flight, some of them handwritten. From flight plan to weather maps, including the most important ATC messages and the Google route. The “PilotsEYE Flight Briefing” (PEFB) is available as pdf, free of charge at http://pilotsEYE.tv/downloads

PilotsEYE.tv – live the fascination of flying

“After a great number of inquires and 12 passenger flights, it was about time for our first freight flight,” says Thomas Aigner, head of AignerMEDIA. Besides this film of the most modern freight aircraft currently in the air, the B777F, another film will appear of a flight with a genuine grand dame of the skies, an MD11, on a rotation from Frankfurt to South America.”

SUBTITLES:  ENGLISH  •  GERMAN •  RUSSIAN
REGIONCODE:  FREE
FORMAT:  PAL (But will play on any PC with DVD/Blu-ray Player, at least)

DVD:  EAN 4260139480210•ISBN 978-3-943781-21-2•ASIN B00DZKNEPK
BD:    EAN 4260139480319•ISBN 978-3-943781-31-1•ASIN B00CDALQVC

Check out the first review at Flightmap.net